Egypt Daily News – Former President Donald Trump reportedly told donors during a private fundraiser that he warned Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping he would launch military strikes on Moscow and Beijing if either country moved to invade Ukraine or Taiwan, respectively.
Audio recordings obtained by reporters Josh Dawsey, Tyler Pager, and Isaac Arnsdorf reveal Trump recounting those conversations during 2024 campaign events in New York and Florida. Excerpts from the tapes, released to CNN and featured in the authors’ new book 2024, provide insight into Trump’s diplomatic posture during his presidency and campaign trail rhetoric.
In one recording, Trump can be heard describing a purported exchange with Putin during his first term.
“With Putin, I said, ‘If you go into Ukraine, I’m going to bomb the sh*t out of Moscow. I’m telling you, I have no choice,’” Trump said. He claimed Putin responded skeptically: “‘I don’t believe you, no way.’ And I said, ‘Way.’”
Trump then recalled making a similar warning to President Xi regarding Taiwan.
“I said the same thing to them. I said, ‘If you go into Taiwan, I’m going to bomb the sh*t out of Beijing,’” Trump claimed. “He thought I was crazy. He said, ‘Beijing? You can’t even bomb [inaudible].’ I said, ‘I have no choice.’ He believed me 10 percent… and we never had a problem.”
The statements add to Trump’s long-standing claim that Russia would not have invaded Ukraine had he remained in office. Speaking to reporters, White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly echoed the sentiment, saying, “As President Trump has said time and again, Russia never dared invade Ukraine when he was in office. It happened only when Biden was in office.”
Despite his confrontational rhetoric, Trump has repeatedly advocated for a ceasefire in Ukraine, though his efforts have reportedly been met with resistance from Moscow. In one recent meeting, Trump expressed frustration with Putin.
“We get a lot of [expletive] thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth,” Trump told reporters, noting that diplomatic efforts to end the war have proven more difficult than anticipated. “He’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”
While Ukraine agreed to an unconditional ceasefire in March, Russia has continued its aerial assaults, including one of the largest overnight attacks since the war began. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reported that the country’s air defenses intercepted most of the barrage, which included hundreds of drones, as well as cruise and hypersonic missiles.
Trump reportedly spoke separately with both Putin and Zelensky last week. According to the Wall Street Journal, Trump’s conversation with Putin yielded no progress toward ending the conflict. “I’m disappointed, frankly, that President Putin hasn’t stopped,” Trump said following the call.
In contrast, during a call with Zelensky, Trump expressed his intention to bolster Ukraine’s air defense capabilities. Axios reported that Trump pledged to send ten Patriot missile systems to Kyiv in response to the intensifying Russian attacks.
“We’re going to have to send more weapons, defensive weapons primarily,” Trump said, emphasizing that Ukraine was “getting hit very, very hard.”
Trump’s remarks about President Xi come amid rising U.S.–China tensions, following the imposition of sweeping tariffs on Chinese goods earlier this year. The two leaders held their first phone conversation of Trump’s second term last month, as both nations attempted to manage escalating friction.
China considers self-governed Taiwan a breakaway province and has not ruled out the use of force to achieve reunification. Beijing conducted large-scale military exercises near the island this spring in a show of force.
Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te has reiterated the island’s position, vowing to “resist annexation or encroachment.” While the United States maintains strategic ambiguity regarding Taiwan’s defense, it continues to provide substantial military and diplomatic support.
